Kyrie Irving’s fourth-quarter outburst wasn’t enough in his Mavericks home debut as Minnesota nips Dallas, 124-121
Andre Johnson 
SUSPENSEFUL ENDING
Mavericks’ superstars Kyrie Irving and Luka Dončić were dealt their second consecutive setback as new teammates in a 124-121 loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves Monday night.
Still, their latest defeat didn’t unfold without some jaw-dropping suspense.
After a lethargic first half in which he accounted for just four points on 2-of-8 shooting, Irving subsequently caught fire in the second half of his home debut for Dallas, most notably throughout the pivotal fourth quarter.
In the final frame, Irving demonstrated why he had emerged, in recent weeks, as one of the NBA’s most sought-after midseason acquisitions, one who wound up becoming a massive pick-up by the Mavericks.
The 11-year veteran registered 26 of his game-high 36 points over the game’s final 12 minutes against a scrappy Minnesota team, which managed to withstand a furious rally by Dallas and escape in a nailbiter before an announced sellout crowd of 20,325 witnesses in American Airlines Center.
Monday’s loss was the Mavericks’ second in as many as games, this after Dallas (31-28) had reeled off three consecutive road wins to improve from sixth to fourth place in the Western Conference standings.
Against the Timberwolves (31-29), the Mavericks appeared as if they were well on their way to getting blown out of their building after the visitors’ lead had increased to as many as 14 in the first half and 26 when Anthony Edward’s mid-range jumper made it 89-63, Minnesota, at the 5:56 mark of the third.
It wasn’t long thereafter, though, that Irving completely went off, thus helping Dallas make it a one-possession game and a chance to force overtime in the game’s final minute.
After Minnesota’s Mike Conley missed the backend of a 1-and-1 to give the Timberwolves a 124-121 lead, Dončić grabbed the rebound and signaled timeout with 14.9 seconds remaining and a chance for Dallas to force an extra session.
However, after touches by Irving and Dončić from beyond the arc, both players were heavily defended and couldn’t get off a shot as Irving turned the ball over into the waiting arms of Taurean Price, who heaved it into the open court as time expired.
“Yeah, I think it’s safe to say that one was trying to get the other, and the other was trying to get the ball back to that one,” Mavericks coach Jason Kidd said of his team’s final possession involving Irving and Dončić. “It’s going to happen. It was just like (against) Sacramento (in Saturday’s overtime loss), they had the opportunity. Give them credit.
“They got the deflection on the pass and that kind of threw the play off. But just understanding those guys were playing tonight in that fourth quarter, it was kind of like the first quarter in L.A. and Sacramento, starting with Kai’s (Kyrie Irving’s) aggressiveness and being able to get us going. That helped put us in the position to tie the game.”
Dončić, who’s currently tied with Philadelphia’s Joel Embiid as the NBA’s leading scorer (33.2 points per game), also came up big on a night in which the Mavericks had only two starters to score in double figures.
Dončić scored 18 of his 33 points on 10-of-20 shooting in the second half, and Christian Wood finished with 24 points on 7-of-12 field goals in 22 minutes off the bench for Dallas, which appeared done in after allowing its 65-54 halftime deficit swell to 26 midway through the third.
NEAR TEXAS-SIZED COMEBACK
“I am still trying to emotionally recover,” Irving said after manufacturing his biggest performance since joining the Mavs after a 3 ½-year stint with Brooklyn. “It is still so raw. I would have at least liked to get a shot up (on the Dallas’ final possession). Obviously, with Luka taking it in the backcourt on that steal attempt, it messed up our spacing. We were going for a quick two. That was the plan. It didn’t end up going that way and I should have given Luka more spacing.”
Minnesota had four starters to score in double figures as the T’Wolves won the regular season series against the Mavs, 2-1.
Edwards’ 32 points on 12-of-22 shooting in 35 minutes led Minnesota, which holds a 2 ½-game lead over Golden State for the eighth spot in the West.
Monday’s loss dropped Dallas from fourth to fifth in the conference standings. — Andre Johnson
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